Kemper Breeding, CMHC's executive director, would not acknowledge his agency's relationship with either man for reasons of confidentiality.
But court documents show that Larry Bonfiglio, 24, was under CMHC supervision, and that Joshua Kastar, 32, was being treated by the center.
Kastar's conditions of bail release or sentencing also required him to maintain daily contact with the Community Mental Health Center and follow any recommendations given by the agency.
Bonfiglio represented Alaska in the 2003 Special Olympics in Dublin, Ireland. Through the Community Mental Health Center's PRIDE Program, he apparently has direct care providers with him throughout the day, even overnight at his Conifer Woods apartment.
He worked cleaning Smoky Bay Educational Center on Fridays, and spent time there on some Thursday afternoons while a karate class was being taught. Smoky Bay teacher and founder Marti Krohn said a provider was in the building while Bonfiglio was there.
"I had absolutely no idea that he was involved in child pornography at all," Krohn said. "I knew he was interested in Internet pornography, pictures of women, but that's it.
"On Thursdays, if he was here he either watched karate or used the computers," she said. "He promised me he wouldn't use them for pornography."
Bonfiglio also worked for a time as a custodian at the Homer Boys and Girls Club, where he was placed by the PRIDE program, according to Boys and Girls Club Director Dewain Tollefsrud.
Tollefsrud said Bonfiglio quit last spring to compete in the Special Olympics.
It's not clear whether Bonfiglio's caseworker or anyone else at Community Mental Health Center knew about his interest in child pornography. But Homer Police Sgt. Joe Hamilton said in the criminal complaint that during an interview with the suspects, Bonfiglio admitted he used to "have a problem with viewing child pornography, but now he has a caseworker."
Hamilton said Bonfiglio also told him he has downloaded about 200 images of child pornography over the past two years.
And a friend of Bonfiglio's told police that Bonfiglio had given away his computer because he thought his Community Mental Health Center caseworkers were becoming suspicious of his activities.
In Kastar's apartment, police found child pornography on his computer hard drive, on floppy discs and CD-ROMs, and in computer printouts, as well as several photos in an envelope kept next to his bed. Police also found a framed picture of a nude female child in a bathtub, and confiscated several VHS tapes.
Susan Drathman, program director for the PRIDE program, refused to comment on the matter. She referred all calls to Executive Director Breeding.
"We are not at liberty to discuss who is a patient here," Breeding said Monday. "We have limitations, ethically and professionally, that we have to abide by."
When asked if that confidentiality extended to withholding information from direct care providers or from client employers, Breeding refused to comment.
Community Mental Health Center's PRIDE program provides comprehensive support services to individuals with developmental disabilities, according to its Web site. Direct care providers give support services and skills development to clients in their home, at work, at school or in the community.
Drathman said direct care providers report to a client's case manager. Some Community Mental Health Center clients are with providers around the clock, she said.
Chris Bernard can be reached at cbernard@homernews.com.
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